Cooperation with China

THE visit of Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao to Islamabad later this week holds much promise for enhancing economic ties between China and Pakistan as well as for regional cooperation. The two countries are expected to sign 10 agreements worth billions of dollars in a wide variety of areas. In addition, the Chinese premier will be attending the fourth Asian Cooperation Dialogue ministerial meeting, which will be held in Islamabad from April 6. The meeting will provide a valuable opening to forge closer economic links between Pakistan and Asean members as well as strengthen Pakistan’s economic role in the region. The meeting is part of the Strategic Vision of East Asia, which envisages greater common Asian understanding for economic cooperation. While regional cooperative frameworks exist in Asia, like Asean, Gulf Cooperation Council, Saarc and ECO, there is still the absence of an arrangement for continent-wide cooperation like we see in other parts of the world. In this regard, the meeting will play an important role in starting an Asian initiative focused largely on economic cooperation.

As for Pakistan and China, there is now a gradual shift in cooperation from the traditional political and military areas to economic forms, particularly commerce and trade. Pakistan is hopeful of enhanced Chinese investment, particularly from the private sector, in the coming years. Chinese investment in key sectors of the economy will not only give the country’s manufacturing sector a boost but will also allow for transfer of technology in areas where Pakistan is lagging. In the pipeline are plans to establish a free trade area, to expand the existing preferential trade agreement, to explore new investment opportunities and to undertake joint ventures. Over the past five years, China has almost doubled its share in Pakistan’s total imports and is its fourth largest source of imports after Saudi Arabia, the US and the UAE. If unofficial trade is also taken into account, China will be even higher up in this category as a significant amount of goods from China are smuggled into Pakistan every year. While local producers have protested that the cheap Chinese imports have pushed them into a corner and domestic industry has suffered as a consequence, Pakistani consumers have welcomed the growing import of Chinese products as they represent good value for money. An important concession that both countries are now proposing is duty-free import of certain categories of goods. If this is implemented, smuggling in these items would reduce significantly.

A closer look at trade between the two countries, however, shows that a lot needs to be done to address the growing trade imbalance that is emerging. During the fiscal year 2003-04, Pakistan’s exports of selected items to China fell by 42.7 per cent while China showed a growth of 91.9 per cent on items included on the list. This situation needs to be corrected for the volume of trade to grow. China can also use Pakistan as a base for producing certain items for the region. One hopes that the proposed free trade area will lead to a rise in Chinese investment in Pakistan. Similarly, Pakistan has to work harder at enhancing its exports to China. In this, issues of quarantine and quality control should be sorted out so that items like rice and fruit from Pakistan find their way into Chinese markets. Such moves will help strengthen ties between the two countries even further.

Pope John Paul II

THE passing of Pope John Paul II marks an end to a reign that will be remembered not only for many ground-breaking moves but also for the Vatican’s continued rigidity on abortion, stem cell research and gender issues. Karol Wojtyla’s appointment as pope in 1978 was itself seen as a landmark move for the Catholic Church, as he was the first non-Italian to become pope since 1523. Soon after taking over, Pope John Paul II embarked on many journeys around the world to spread his mission which, in his lifetime, would see him circle the globe about 27 times. He will be remembered for his visit to Cuba in 1998 after which Fidel Castro allowed Catholics to celebrate Christmas that year, but his most historic visit was perhaps the one he made to Israel in the new millennium. In a rare move, he posted a prayer in the Western Wall in Jerusalem asking for forgiveness on behalf of those who “have caused the children of Abraham to suffer”.

He had good relations with Muslim leaders - he was the first pope to enter a mosque - and will be remembered for standing up for peace when he condemned the two wars on Iraq and for rejecting the idea of a new anti-Muslim crusade implied by President Bush in one of his early post-9/11 speeches. Pope John Paul faced many scandals that rocked the Catholic Church, the most recent being sex abuse charges against priests in North America, an issue that damaged the Church’s reputation. Also, the rigidity the pope displayed in refusing to address issues such as ordaining women priests or allowing birth control even amidst the growing AIDS crisis and his inability to engage in a dialogue with other Christian groups proved to be some of his shortcomings. He will, however, be remembered for his global leadership skills at a time when religiosity is increasing and the role of religious leaders as harbingers of social justice seems to be diminishing.

Against their will

BRITISH High Commissioner Mark Grant’s statement on Thursday at a seminar on forced marriages in which he said that awareness campaigns on the issue were producing some results highlights how this brutal practice continues to affect so many unfortunate young men and women in Britain and Pakistan. Stories of British Pakistani parents drugging their daughters and putting them on planes bound back to Pakistan where they are forcefully married have been filling the British press for years now. That the UK mission in Islamabad is receiving more complaints from British nationals of Pakistani origin asking for help because they were being forced to marry against their will also underlines the pressing need for both governments to address this issue. The head of the mission’s consular section told the symposium that “the British government was considering declaring the practice of forced marriage a criminal” one: perhaps this will serve as a deterrent as parents will think twice before forcing their children into marriage.

Early this year, the British Home Office and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office launched a joint Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) to undertake policy, projects and give practical advice to those at risk of being forced into marriage. This shows the seriousness with which they are tackling the issue, which is sadly lacking in Pakistan. According to a report published in 2002, the main motive for British Asian families to compel their daughters into forced marriages had more to do with restraining increasingly independent young women. Some who have rebelled against their families have wound up dead in honour killings in England. This is most regrettable as it once again brings to light how a false sense of honour takes precedence over women’s rights. One can only hope that this British initiative will have some positive effect on the Pakistan government whose own record at addressing such issues has so far been poor.